Child grabbed outside Preston store left ‘too afraid to go out into town anymore’

A furious dad has spoken out after a man grabbed his terrified 13-year-old son outside a department store and ordered him to “come with me.”

Unemployed builder Robert Pavlov, 34, of Cannon Street, Preston, drunkenly approached the youngster outside Marks and Spencer in Fishergate, Preston, while the youngster waited for his parents who were shopping inside.

Preston Magistrates’ Court heard Pavlov grabbed the teenager when a dog he was walking caught the attention of the youngster’s five-month-old puppy.

When the boy’s parents came out of the store, they discovered Pavlov shaking the terrified youngster.

Today the boy’s dad, who doesn’t want to be named, said: “My son is the quietest, most mild-mannered and intelligent boy you could ever wish to meet and this drunken scumbag just grabbed him.

“It was surreal, we were walking out of the store after doing some shopping and saw he had hold of our son.

“I just saw red. Luckily the Marks and Spencer staff held me back, they were fantastic.

“My son has gone through a really rough time because of this. He is too afraid to go out into town anymore.”

Prosecuting, Martine Connah told Preston Magistrates’ Court that Pavlov had been on his way to return the animal to his ex-partner when the incident happened at 5pm on November 22.

In a statement read out to the court, the victim’s mum described how her son was “crying and frozen with fear.”

Pavlov pleaded guilty to using threatening or abusive behaviour. He was ordered to pay a £75 fine, £70 compensation and £85 costs.

Robert Kellock, defending, said: “He accepts his behaviour was unacceptable. He doesn’t put forward any logical explanation for it.”